Avoiding carpal tunnel syndrome

GINA SMITH

Published 4:00 am, Sunday, March 29, 1998

Q: I do data entry for a living, and it occurs to me that I may be at risk of getting carpal tunnel syndrome. Several of my co-workers say they have it. How can I tell if I have it? If I don't, how can I keep from getting it? Mari Ann F., Sacramento

A: If you had carpal tunnel syndrome, you would know it because you would be in serious misery. Carpal tunnel syndrome, or CTS as it is sometimes called, is a painful wrist disorder.

You may be at risk, though, if you've noticed tingling in your hands or arms, numbness, or a continual tight feeling that you constantly feel the need to massage out.

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If you have any one of those signs, you probably should see a doctor right away and have him or her test the median nerve in your wrist. (That's the nerve affected in the disorder.) After that, the doctor might perform what's known an electromyogram, which tests whether the muscles surrounding the nerve have been affected, too.

Typically, doctors prescribe wrist splints and exercises to CTS sufferers, treatments that they claim are often successful and don't require expensive and debilitating surgery.

That said, CTS is not as common among computer users as the enormous amount of press it's generated would suggest. According to recent figures, doctors have reported just under 2 million cases. That's far fewer than the some 9 million cases of back, neck and shoulder pain that they figure is directly related to repetitive machine and computer use. If you sit too close to your computer and at odd angles that force you to stretch in weird ways for long periods of time, you're definitely at risk.

A good rule of thumb is this: When seated at your computer, think parallel. The tops of your thighs should be parallel to the floor, not at an angle, as should be your forearms when you're typing. Your wrists should be level with your fingers when typing, too. Your eyes should be level with the screen, never looking up or down at it in a way that strains your neck and shoulders.

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There is no question that CTS, back pain, eye strain and other disorders are real ailments that affect people, but you don't need to spend a ton of money on preventing them. I'm skeptical about all those fancy gizmos on the market designed to take advantage of people's fears.

Sure, there are those funny-shaped keyboards you can buy that their manufacturers claim make typing less hazardous to your wrists, but I find that a $2 wrist pad - and lots of breaks that get me up and away from the computer - are about all I need to keep soreness to a minimum.

Predictably, there are lots of Web sites where you can find more information on CTS and other disorders. Some of the best: Ergoweb (www.ergoweb.com); Cumulative Trauma Disorder Online News (www.ctdnews.com) and Ergonomics Homepage, (www.distrib.com / ergonomics / homepage.html).

Gina Smith is the technology correspondent for ABC Television and appears regularly on "World News Tonight with Peter Jennings," "Good Morning America" and

"Nightline." She also hosts "Connected with Gina Smith," a nationally syndicated radio talk show that airs Sundays in San Francisco on KSFO from 9 p.m to midnight and in Sacramento frin 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Got a question? Call the Help File hotline at 1-888-GINA-007 any Saturday from 7 to 10 a.m.&lt;